Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1887-01-21
4 MURDER CASE
IN VIRGINIA mon LIFE WITH MANY DRAMAT
fC FEATUREs-oNE on THE MOST REMARK
ABLE INSTANCES or CIRCUMsTANTIAL EvI
DENCE on RECORD.

IN VIRGINIA mon LIFE WITH MANY DRAMAT-
fC FEATuREs-oNE or THE MOST REMARK
ABLE INSTANCES or CIRCUMsrANTIAL EvI-
DENCE on RECORD.
Thomas jefferson Cluverius, descendant
from President Tyler, was hung at Rich
mohd, Va, last Friday for the murder in
1885 Of Miss Lillian Madison, his cousin and
IA direct descendant Of President Madison
The prisoners nerve kept him up to the
last ON his last interview with his relatives
and the minister " no attended him he told
them he was innocent and went 10 the gal
lows without finching.
The story of his crime conviction and
respites is Of intense dramatic interest The
body of good-looking young women was
found in the old city reservoir at Richmond
ON the morning Of March II, 1885. 1t was
pronounced by the coroner case of sui
eide, and at the morgue the body was iden-
titled by two young women as that uf a
friend Frances Lillian Madison, % yenrs
old. This would probably been the last of
the matter had not a reporter visited the
scene Of the drowning and worked up a
murder theory upon IA chain of circumstan-
tia evidence. Detectives and police were
set 10 work, and in a short time brought to
light circumstances that added strength 10
the murder theory A woman who had reg
istered at the American hotel on the 18th
of March under the name of Miss +, l..
Merton was missing from the hotel, and her
disappearance and the finding of the body
about the same time furnished the clew
While the so-caled Miss Merton" was at
the hotel she wrote and received several
notes but one directed by her was never
delivered and after her departure from
the hotel it was torn to pieces by the clerk
and cast into the waste basket The scraps
of this note aud the envelope were subse-
| quenty brought to light, and when pasted
together served as one of the principal links
| in the chain which convicted the murderer.
| it being addressed to IT j. Cuverius
Cluverius was a young lawyer Of King
and Queen county of high social standing
and a cousin to the dead girl He was en-
| gagged to be married at the time to "A young
woman of wealth and position. He was
known to have been in Richmond on the
| 18th Of March, and was at once arrested
and brought TO Richmond. He was indict
ed in April for murder and his trial began
at the May term Of the court aud continued
| for - days. The prisoner pleaded not
| guilty. Nearly 200 witnesses we're examn-
ed. and step by step the evidence fixed up
on the prisoner the brand Of seducer and
murderer. The evidence was entirely cir
cumstantal, aud furnishes one of the most
remarkable instances of conviction from
such testimony ON record. Witnesses swore
to seeing Cluverius with the girl within a
few hundred yards Of the pond where the
body was found In the trampled mud at
the ponds edge was found a watch-key
which was proved to have belonged 10 Gu
verus. This was the nece ssary link The
remarkable feature Of the case is this Gu.
verius denied that he had seen the girl dur
ing the fatal day. II he had admitted he
ing with her up to the time the two were
last Seen together, and had declared that
the watch key had been given Hs keep
sake no jury on earth could have convicted
him or would have dared Ia declare that
the young woman could not have wander
eel of alone, and been put out Of the way
10y ruiilans The jury was but II minute
IN making the verdict one Of murder in the
first degree, and the prisoner was sentenced
to he hanged the next November TN an
appeal 10 the supreme court but one voice
dissented from confirming the lower court
judgment He was resentcnced to be hang
ed December 10, 1886 but was respited 10y
the governor until yesterday upon an ap
pication for pardon or Imprisonment foi
life.
false "snciety" sympathy was wurkrd
up in Richmond and vicinity in favor Of
Cluverius and IA petition to the governor
for his pardon was signed by hundreds NJ
people. but there was no reasonable doubt
Of his guilt and Gov Lee deserves credit
for refusing To interfere with the course o
/ iustip, in his case